


Born Yesterday

by Ladytalon



Category: Titanfall
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Casual Sex, Deception, Embarrassment, Enemy Lovers, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Hazing, Oral Sex, Pick-Up Lines, Semi-Public Sex, Shore Leave, Walk Into A Bar, pre-Operation Broadsword, she's doing it for all of us tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 02:18:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11750016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ladytalon/pseuds/Ladytalon
Summary: An IMC Grunt is tricked into going inside a Militia bar during a cease-fire, and ends up raiding the Lastimosa Armory.





	Born Yesterday

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this ages ago and for those of you I made a promise to...sorry it took me so long. If you squint, it's not that bad.

She knows she’s made a mistake the moment she walks through the door, but by then it’s too late to turn tail and run. She should’ve stayed in the barracks; she could be safe in her own bunk right now, instead of actively moving herself forward into this hive of…well, she can’t really think of what to call it, but she shouldn't _be_ here. Ellis Mekhi, IMC Grunt, has been effectively tricked into coming to – of all things – a Militia watering hole. There’s music being played somewhere, barely audible under the roar of so many voice laughing and arguing all at once.

Her squad mates are probably back in the barracks laughing at how gullible she is, Ellis thinks as she forces her feet to keep propelling herself towards one of the empty seats at the bar. At least, she’s fairly sure that’s the bar – the lighting isn’t the best. One drink. She’ll have _one drink_ , and then she’ll leave. Everyone here would know what she is if Ellis simply turned around and ran, wouldn’t they? She wouldn’t have a breath of a prayer, then. Well, it doesn't really look like _everyone_ here is MCOR…but enough of them are. Too many. _Oh, my god. This is bad, this is_ beyond _bad, but I can keep it together for just one drink…right?_

She can do this.

One foot in front of the other.

One drink.

Easy.

Ellis barely keeps herself from collapsing on the barstool, and licks her lips nervously as the bored-looking woman tending bar glances over. “Get you something?”

“Yeah…um…a drink?” _Oh yeah, smooth._

The bartender sighs irritably. “Which kind.”

“It honestly does _not_ matter-”

“Get her a Hammond Goes To Hell,” a voice interrupts, and Ellis looks up in time to see a man settling himself on the stool to her left. “That’s always decent, and besides…it’s just fun to say.” He glances over at her with a smile that she returns out of sheer reflex, because Ellis has caught a glimpse of the left side of his face. “You’re new here, eh?”

Ellis nods, trying not to stare at the burn scars that twist and pucker his skin, pulling his left eye slightly out of alignment with the right. “Yeah.” She glances over at the door and when she looks back, the man is still watching her as if he can tell that she shouldn't be here. “Everything okay?” She asks before she can think it through. “You look like you’ve got a staring problem.”

He blinks in surprise, then lifts a hand to rub the side of his neck as he laughs self-consciously. “Sorry.”

Now _she’s_ embarrassed. “No, it’s…it’s okay. I guess I’m just feeling nervous.”

“Yeah? Why’s that?”

“I’m new here,” Ellis reminds him, looking away as the bartender slides a glass of…something…in front of her. “Wow.”

Her companion leans closer and gestures at the colored layers of alcohol. “Neat, eh? Doesn’t look half as good once you’ve given it a proper stir. I think they’ve put Titan battery acid in the bottom, there.” 

“It’s the wrong color for it,” Ellis says. “Have you seen a real Titan?”

The corners of his eyes crinkle as he smiles. “One or two. How about yourself?”

“One or too many,” she responds as a joking play on words. Ellis is sure that he’s not really affiliated with the Militia at all – he doesn't seem the type and, aside from his scars, doesn’t really _look_ it. A little too old, and a _lot_ too friendly. Despite the white hair and facial scarring, he’s not even that bad looking with those dark eyes and dusky skin just a few shades lighter than her own. And, to be perfectly honest, his accent is doing him all _kinds_ of favors. Ellis is willing to overlook the strange goatee. So she smiles back, and doesn’t mind at all when he doesn’t move out of her personal space. “Aren’t you drinking tonight?”

The man shrugs. “Not much of a drinker; I usually come here to people watch, yeah? I might have what you’ve got, though…” he signals the bartender and gestures towards Ellis’ drink, then flashes a thumbs-up. “We’ll drink and die together, how’s that?”

“Is it that bad?” Ellis asks.

“ _That_ depends on what you’ve had to eat today,” he teases, then taps his forehead with a rueful grin. “Ah, me and my manners…name’s Tai. And yours?” 

Tai holds a hand out, and she takes it without hesitation. His grip is firm and strong, and his skin is warm beneath her fingers. “Ellis.”

“Nice one.” Tai’s fingers tighten around her own, exerting gentle pressure to urge her forward. “Tell me, Ellis. Was it a dare brought you here, or were you just curious?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” she blusters desperately as her earlier fears begin to loom. “Wh-what’re you talking about?”

He eyes her speculatively. “No need to worry; it’s pretty common, actually. Nobody here’s going to harm you unless you kick off something first; you’re not, are you?” Ellis shakes her head _no_ and he releases her hand. “Good news, then.”

“Is it really that common?”

Tai smiles and tilts his head towards the far corner of the building. “There’s three IMC Riflemen over there right now, and at least one Pilot. I’d say you’re safe…Grunt, are you?”

“I guess it shows, huh?” Ellis asks, feeling embarrassed again. 

“No worries,” he repeats kindly. “Try your drink.”

By now, Tai’s had the same thing placed in front of him and they clink their glasses together in a silent toast. The alcohol burns its way down her throat and kindles warmth in her stomach; the dimmed lights in the bar burn brighter for it. Ellis sets hers back down, noting that it really _doesn’t_ look that good anymore now that the carefully separated layers of booze have mixed together, and glances over to see that the level of alcohol in Tai’s glass is substantially lower than hers. “They didn’t tell me this was a Militia bar,” she finally admits, and sees the white flash of his grin.

“They never do; that’s the problem with hazing.”

“You seem like you know know a lot about that,” Ellis says, taking another mouthful of liquid fire.

He nudges at his own glass with his fingertips. “I started out with the IMC, same as you. Same as most of the people here…it didn’t take.”

“So you deserted?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“Then why-” Ellis bites back the rest of her question, because they’d been getting along fairly well so far. She doesn’t have to ruin it now.

Tai understands what she’s trying to say, however. “Why am I still sitting next to you? Time was when I wouldn’t…but there’s more to life than just _fighting_ , eh?” His implication is clear, and Ellis finds that she doesn’t mind a bit when one of his hands slips down to rest on her knee. 

“Yeah, there is.” She takes another drink and, reaching down, moves his hand up to her thigh.

They swap tales of their enlistment and first battles under the IMC banner, compare horror stories concerning unwashed and uncouth barracks mates, and work their way through the rest of their drinks as well as a few subsequent refills. By this time, Ellis is almost on Tai’s lap and he’s set aside his empty glass to nuzzle at her neck. “We can’t go back to my bunk,” Ellis says with a hiccup, rubbing her hand over Tai’s goatee. “ _Fuzzy_.”

“Yer _drunk_ ,” he says, slurring his words slightly.

“So are” she hiccups again “ _You_.”

“No’m not,” Tai protests, and turns to the bartender currently sliding their glasses out of reach. “Do _I_ look-”

“Yes, sir. Sorry.”

“Fuck,” he says expressively, making Ellis laugh. “Lessgo.” Tai insists upon paying for their drinks by claiming that his name is Sarah Briggs and that _her_ credit balance is good for it, and the bartender rolls her eyes before gently (but firmly) shooing them out.

They stumble out into the street, laughing at nothing in particular, and somehow manage to make it most of the way to the MCOR compound before their respective buzzes begin a slow decline. “Tai, I don’t know,” Ellis says, hanging back when he would lead her past the sentries. 

“About what?” he asks, stopping to look at her. 

“You,” she says bluntly. “You’re a…one of them, aren’t you? What _are_ you?”

The lights of the Militia compound illuminate his white hair, giving him a halo he probably doesn't deserve. “What I _am_ is horny. D’you think I could at least have a kiss?” Tai sways towards her with a grin, and her attraction to him proves strong enough to withstand the last of her misgivings. “Over there, though, where it’s dark – I’m shy.”

Ellis doubts that _very_ much. “Maybe just one.” There’s still enough alcohol in her system to make her dizzy as he guides her into the lee of the nearest building, then his mouth is on hers and it’s hard to think of anything else but the feel of his body pressed against her. She threads her fingers through his hair and brings one of her hands up to the side of his face; the shiny burn scars are smooth under her palm and Ellis traces them unthinkingly. “Oh. Sorry,” she apologizes when Tai draws back to look at her.

His dark eyes watch her carefully. “I don’t mind.”

“So, can I…?”

“If you’d like.”

She touches the scars again, wonders where he’d gotten them, but she knows better than to ask. “Do they hurt?” She draws the pad of her index finger down along his nose, tracing a whorl of burnished flesh before Tai kisses her again.

“Not anymore,” he promises, voice dropping to a smooth rumble that sends more heat to the pit of her belly. His accent is doing all kinds of things for her; a bit silly, perhaps, but she _does_ think it’s sexy. Another kiss has Ellis working her hands under the heavy coat he’s wearing to caress warm, muscled skin that she wouldn't touching more of. Tai’s own hands are busily moving over her body, cupping her breasts and seizing her ass to pull her in close for a brush against his very prominent erection. “I want you,” Tai breathes in her ear. “Ready to go in, now?”

This is one of the biggest mistakes she’s ever going to make, but it also might be the best one. At the very least, she’ll have one hell of a story. “Let’s go.” Ellis sneaks a hand down to feel the heft of him when he starts to release her, which only makes him groan and push her back against the wall.

“Keep that up and I’ll have you right here.” Tai kisses her again, and then his fingers are pushing past the waistband of her pants. He pauses when she gasps. “Yes or no?”

This _definitely_ calls for a yes. A very big yes. “ _Yes_.” Ellis grasps his forearm and pulls his hand down into her panties, moaning when he strokes between her legs. 

Tai curls a finger up inside her, breathing hard upon finding how wet she is. “ _Fuck_ yeah.” He guides her hand to the front of his own pants and makes a happy sound when Ellis grips him through the fabric. Their kisses turn eager as they touch each other, and then Tai surprises her again by yanking his hand out of her underwear and dropping to his knees in front of her. Ellis sways against the wall as he pulls her pants down around her knees and leans forward.

“Oh, God. _Oh-!_ ”

“Bend your knees a bit…yes, that’s perfect.” Tai buries his face in her crotch without a single shred of hesitation and it’s too bad, really, that her IMC contract clearly states that she remain single because this is definitely grounds for a marriage proposal. Whatever they teach them in the Marauder Corps is something else. His tongue slides through her folds, and Ellis promises herself that she’ll never have another uncharitable thought about his facial hair as long as she lives. _A Militia Pilot could shoot me right now and I wouldn’t even care,_ she thinks feverishly. Tai licks her into a frenzy so that she has to hold her own hands over her mouth to keep from screaming while his tongue rasps over her clit.

She’s dangerously close to collapsing right there…she’s just close, _period_. “Oh, please,” Ellis finds herself whimpering, reaching down with one hand to grip his hair. Tai places a sucking kiss on her swollen clitoris before drawing away slightly to catch his breath, then his tongue is back to doing wonderful things to her and her voice rises to a shriek. She writhes helplessly as she comes against his mouth with a full-throated scream, and a part of her is aware that she really shouldn’t have stopped trying to be quiet. Ellis sags back against the wall, panting, and lets Tai hold her up because her legs refuse to do it. “That was…oh, wow.”

He kisses the inside of each thigh as he carefully pulls her pants back up. “I’ll do better once we’re inside – you’re still coming, yeah?” Tai asks, sliding his way up her body as he stands to kiss her again.

“Not right away; I already have,” Ellis says weakly, making him laugh. “We probably shouldn't stay here.”

Tai presses close and nuzzles at her neck, a subtle reminder that he hasn’t exactly enjoyed the same level of excitement that she’s just had. “Let’s go.” He takes her hand and guides her out of the concealing shadows, his entire body tense with suppressed eagerness. They circle around the heavily guarded main entrance and Tai boosts her over a stack of sandbags before vaulting over them easily. “Keep your head down,” he murmurs.

“What if we’re caught?” Ellis whispers back, and he does her the favor of pretending not to hear.

She allows him to shunt her from shadow to shadow, feeling ridiculous each and every time she’s forced to plaster herself to the wall because of an oncoming soldier. For his part, Tai seems to be having the time of his life sneaking an IMC grunt onto a Militia base. Hopefully the cease-fire will hold until she’s safely back in the dropship. “Here, put this on,” he says suddenly, pulling a bundle of cloth from his jacket. It turns out to be a shemagh, and she quickly loops it around her neck to conceal the bottom half of her face; it’s just like the ones that Pilots usually wear. “Nearly there, now.”

“God, I hope so,” Ellis mutters under her breath as he takes her hand again and leads her directly up a flight of stairs, past a number of weapons crates emblazoned with a familiar ‘sun’ symbol as well as the words _Lastimosa Armory_. “Oh, I think we’ve got some of those,” she says.

Tai stops to look at her with an unidentifiable expression. “I hope not.”

They continue past an appallingly large number of soldiers; most of them seem to be grunts, like her, but now and then she catches sight of a few Pilots. One of them actually stops to talk to her would-be conquest. “Hey man, you going to the bar later?”

“I’ve been, actually,” Tai answers smoothly.

The Pilot focuses on her and grins. “You slick bastard.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Uh-huh. I’ll make sure you’re not paged but aside from that, you’re on your own. Have fun, Las-”

“ _Thank you_ ,” Tai interrupts. “We’ll be going now.”

Ellis isn’t sure if she should feel insulted or not. “What was that?”

“Oh,” he says with a smile, “nothing much. I hope you’re not offended.”

“I’ve heard a lot worse.” She decides that she’s definitely _not_ feeling insulted – the Pilot had correctly surmised that she’s there to have sex with Tai, after all, and there’s no point in pretending anything else. He’s the friendliest one-night-stand she’s ever had, even if he is MCOR in…whatever capacity he serves. She’ll have to ask him about that.

They have no further run-ins with anyone who’s able to recognize on which side of the fence she stands and before she knows it, Tai’s urging her into a room. Ellis glances around while he locks the door behind them, and hopes that he won’t get into too much trouble for using a Pilot’s quarters for a casual hookup; there are pieces of armor everywhere and weapons propped against the wall – one is being used as a _helmet stand._ “Sorry about the mess,” Tai murmurs, sounding embarrassed as he unzips his jacket.

“It’s not your fault. Most Pilots are too busy showing off to clean up after themselves.”

Tai coughs into his fist. “Yeah. Well.” 

“So where do you _usually_ sleep? I guess you don’t get much privacy if you have to borrow a Pilot’s quarters.”

He gives her a long look, for some reason, and then starts to laugh. “I sleep…very close by, as it happens. C’mere.” Tai draws her into his arms, sliding his hands up beneath her coat. “Take this off, yeah?”

Ellis nods and unzips her standard-issue coat, wondering if the color of it was what had given her away but when she asks Tai about it, he shakes his head with a smile. “What was it, then?”

“I’ll tell you later,” Tai promises, giving her a kiss that has her clinging to him in order to stay upright. In the end, it doesn't matter anyway because he’s backing her to the bed and there’s nowhere else she’d rather be. They fall onto the mattress together in a panting tangle of limbs and anticipation, and then he’s grinding his crotch against hers. Ellis gets both hands down the back of his pants and grips his startlingly muscular backside. “Can we…?”

“ _Oh_ , yes.” Ellis pushes her pants down to her ankles and struggles to get them past her boots while Tai tears open a condom packet with his teeth and lowers his zipper. They really should have planned this out better, as in taking their clothes off _before_ they got to the bed, but this will work too… Tai simply parts her legs and moves to slide his lower body between them so that he’s effectively trapped there. Ellis feels ridiculous when he reaches back to adjust her ‘tied’ ankles around his waist, but then he’s rolling the condom on and tilting his hips forward. “Oh my god. _Fuck_ ,” she hisses, feeling Tai’s cock start to press inside her body.

He pauses to spit into his palm, reaching down to provide additional lubrication. “That’s the idea.”

Ellis arches her back as he pushes in, seating himself to the hilt with a soft grunt. It feels even better than she’d hoped, and she sends a silent _thank you_ to the members of her squad for playing that trick on her. Tai stretches over her as he begins to thrust, bracing himself with one hand while the other shoves her shirt up to expose her breasts. “Let me just - _oooh…!_ ” She wriggles beneath him to help and accidentally clips the bridge of his nose with her elbow as she yanks the shirt off entirely. “Oh my god; I’m so sorry-”

She’s a little unprepared for the sensation of Tai laughing when he’s inside her; it certainly gives the word _vibrator_ meaning. “It’s fine.” Tai lowers himself to kiss her mouth, pressing his body against hers. When he comes up for air, he quickly yanks off his own shirt and his tags fall onto her chest before Tai flips them around onto his back. “These are always in the way.”

“Tell me about it,” Ellis laughs, brushing aside her own and pulling him back down over her. There’s a good deal of very interesting-looking ink decorating his body, and she’s looking forward to checking it all out later.

They kiss as he moves in and out of her slowly, and she's vaguely aware that Tai’s using one hand to work her boots and the rest of her clothing off. He wriggles out of his own and Ellis has cause to appreciate their newfound mobility when Tai’s patience nears its end – he spreads her legs wide and sets his arms on either side of her head. “Hold tight,” he advises.

Ellis obeys unthinkingly and is nearly shoved right off of the bed when she doesn't lock her arms around his back fast enough. Pleasure spikes through her as Tai thrusts hard and fast; there's probably an analogy out there somewhere for a single-minded Milita man, but she can't be bothered with wondering about it. All there is has constricted to the rapidly cresting ecstasy as he pumps his hips steadily. “Oh, _yes_ , like that-!” Ellis digs her fingers into his skin as light explodes behind her eyelids, tightening around him while his movements become more and more erratic. She can feel his cock stiffen further right before he comes with only a low, stuttered exhalation of pleasure to prove that he’s actually enjoying himself.

Tai continues rocking back and forth for a little while longer before dropping down to press his face into her neck. “Ah, god. That was… _very_ nice.” She accepts his weight with a contented sigh until he remembers how much heavier he is and shifts to one side. There’s not much room for both of them on the narrow bed and he nearly falls off while dealing with the condom, but Ellis curls against his chest as Tai pulls one of the blankets up over them. “Alright?”

“Yeah; no complaints so far.” She runs a finger up the thick swirls of bluish-black ink that form a sleeve that runs from his left shoulder all the way down to his wrist. “What’s this?”

She can feel him smile against her hair. “I had it done before I left Harmony for the first time; figured I’d have something to remember it by and I wouldn’t be homesick. What I _really_ had was a raging infection because the artist used the wrong needles.”

“Oh, no! That’s not a very good souvenir then, is it?” Ellis laughs. “The design is nice, though.”

“Well, it’s a fairly common one for islanders like me. Of course as you go, you tend to pick up a few extra here and there,” he says as she begins to trace another tattoo with her fingertips. It’s a Militia-related design that she’s seen before, of a prowler. Ellis isn't sure who would actually want to be anywhere _near_ a prowler, even an artist’s rendering of one, because she’s been up close and personal with a few of them before. Tai lets her inspect his tattoos for a few moments more, then distracts her with a kiss. “Why don’t you let me take a look at yours, now?”

Ellis curls her arms around his neck as he moves on top of her again, nipping gently at the side of her throat. “I don’t really have that many,” she confesses, running her palms over his broad shoulders. Whatever he does in the Militia, he certainly hasn’t let age detract from his body – she likes a man who takes care of himself. 

“You’ll get there, I’m sure…but in the meantime,” Tai says, punctuating his words with kisses as he works his way down her neck, “I’m sure you won’t mind if I search for any I might have missed.”

No, Ellis thinks as his teeth graze the curve of her left breast, she doesn’t mind at all. 

She arches her back when Tai begins to lick at her nipples before sucking them into his mouth one at a time, occasionally drawing back to blow a stream of cool air that makes her shudder. He takes his time working down her body, where he fulfills his earlier pledge to ‘do better’ – she’s _definitely_ going into a Militia bar the next time she’s looking for casual companionship. When Ellis has finally recovered from her latest high, she looks down at the man resting his chin on her hip and runs her fingers though his short white hair. Tai smiles up at her and very politely asks if she’d return the favor.

She loves a man with good manners. “Are you kidding? Get up here.” They spend a while kissing, pressed against each other tightly, and Ellis feels her excitement rising yet again. _It must be something in the water_ , she thinks whimsically. “You smell…really, _really_ good,” Ellis murmurs, breathing in the warm scent of his skin. “Lie down.”

Tai obeys, tucking one arm behind his neck so that he can stay propped up enough to watch her, and his eyelashes flutter as she begins kissing her way down his chest. “It's the scent of rebellion.”

“Oh, please,” she laughs. So does he, but it trails off into a low groan as Ellis arrives at her destination. His dick smells faintly of latex from the condom they’d used earlier, though it fades quickly enough as she runs her tongue over him. Once again, she notices that he’s unusually fit for his age – and he’s probably never skipped leg day since the moment he was born, judging by the definition of his thigh muscles.

In fact, it’s almost as if he’s been trained as a… _No. No way_.

Tai makes another deep, appreciative noise in the back of his throat as she takes him into her mouth. There's no way he could be a Pilot; none of them would ever bring an IMC grunt back to their own barracks, except for some sort of interrogation. Tai doesn’t seem to be inclined to ask her anything but for more of what she’s doing with her tongue. “ _Fuck_ , that's nice.”

Ellis thanks him with her mouth full, making him groan again. She comes up for air and he runs a hand down her back as she shifts her lower body across the narrow mattress. His cock twitches when she purses her lips and blows on it in direct mimicry of what he’d done to her earlier. Ellis places a sucking kiss at the base of his shaft and, curving her palm beneath the heavy weight of his balls, begins to lick them to his obvious enjoyment.

She moves back to take him back into her mouth, working her fist up and down Tai’s cock as she swirls her tongue over the head of it. “D’you have another condom?” Ellis asks when, several minutes later, he reaches down to guide her up over his body. She settles astride his stomach as he retrieves one and hands it to her, watching her through heavily lidded eyes.

“Your hair,” Tai says while she rolls the condom on his dick and mounts him with a quick indrawn breath.

Ellis braces her hands on his chest, her fingertips resting against the prowler tattoo. “What about it?”

He slides his legs up behind her back for her to lean against, and presses down on her hips. “That’s how I knew you were IMC. Your haircut’s one of the three standard choices for new female recruits.”

“We have five choices now,” she informs him as she clenches her internal muscles.

“I stand corrected and...humbly beg…beg your pardon…” Tai trails off and grasps her waist. “Oh, do that again.”

She’s already been so overstimulated that another orgasm is out of the question for her, but Ellis is enjoying herself nonetheless - there’s still pleasure to be had as their bodies connect with soft slaps and slow, undulating movements. The look on his face alone will serve as inspiration when she’s back in her lonely bunk with nothing but her own hand for company. She watches him beneath her lashes as she rides him, watches him suck his lower lip between his teeth. Ellis can feel the tension growing in his body even as Tai’s fingers sink into her skin and he begins to push her down onto his cock.

He shifts his legs suddenly and, keeping her firmly in place, begins to thrust up into her. “Oh, God… _oooooh - !_ ”

Tai doesn’t answer, because he’s still pounding into her at a bruising pace until his back arches and his whole body stiffens as he comes. Once again, he’s surprisingly quiet but she doesn’t ask him about it until after he’s pulled her back into his arms and has given her several slow, lazy kisses. “There’s not much privacy to be found, I suppose. After a bit, you learn to create your own.”

“That makes sense,” Ellis says, tugging on his goatee gently. “I guess you’d have friends who’d never let you live it down if they heard.”

“That’s the least of it.” Tai smiles and pillows his head on an arm, looking at her as he rests the palm of his free hand on the swell of her hip. “Can you stay longer?”

That brings her back to reality…the one where she’s not only been sleeping with the enemy, but is all alone on a base full of them. _Time to get the hell out of here_. “The last dropship’s leaving soon,” Ellis murmurs. “I should get going.”

“If you’d like,” he says, actually looking disappointed.

She sits up, feeling a bit disappointed herself, and starts looking around for her clothing. Tai helps her search before putting his own on, though this time he pulls on a green military jumpsuit and a thermal undershirt that completely covers his tattoos. “Oh. You’re…coming with me?”

He gives her a look that's half amusement, half indignation. “I’m not going to let you fend for yourself in here; I’m not an animal, no matter what your command might say.” Okay, so not half-and-half; more like 30-70. “When is the last pick-up?”

“You really don’t have to-”

“Yes,” Tai interrupts gently, “I do.”

The silence threatens to become awkward while he leads her out of the Militia compound, but she breathes easier the further away from it that she gets. “I wonder how long the cease-fire will last,” Ellis ventures as he slips an arm around her shoulders while they walk.

“It’ll be strained by the morning, nearly gone by the evening, and we’ll be back to trying to kill each other by the following day,” Tai says casually. “The IMC will have already sent a few raiders to disrupt our lines and steal some supplies.”

“Is that…common?”

He laughs. “It’s standard practice. We’ve stolen the batteries out of several Titans just this afternoon.”

“Oh,” Ellis says. “How do you know?”

Tai pauses, and looks down at her. “Because I took three of them.”

She absorbs this information and the realization it provides her with begins to make her feel very, _very_ stupid. Her heart stutters in her chest as she abruptly remembers exactly who wears the prowler insignia – the Militia SRS. “Oh, my god. That room…that room was yours, wasn’t it?” Ellis asks. “You’re a Pilot.”

“Yes.”

“So, all that time when I was talking about Pilots…”

“Yes.”

Well, that explains his legs. “Oh, god. When I asked if you’d ever seen a Titan.”

“Yes.”

“So… _do_ you have a…?”

Tai laughs. “Would you like to meet him?” Without waiting for her response, he pulls a small comm unit from his pocket and keys in something on the pad before putting it back away. “He’s around here somewhere, but he’ll come to say hi.”

Ellis can’t help herself from shrinking away when Tai starts to reach his arm back around her. He stops in mid-motion, and slowly drops his hand with a look on his face that she feels sorry to have put there. “I’m-”

“It’s…fine. I suppose I deserve it,” he says quietly. “I can tell BT not to come, if you’d rather he stayed away.”

There’s no reason for her to be so surprised, Ellis tells herself. Of course there would be a possibility that he’d turn out to be a Pilot; she was just too damned stupid to read the signs. “Actually, I’ve, uh, never met a Titan before.” He glances up at her from where he's been studying the scuff patterns his boots are making in the dirt. “We had fun together, didn’t we?”

Tai smiles wistfully. “Yeah.”

“I guess this is why you didn’t tell me straight away that you were a Pilot.”

“That’s about the size of it.”

They resume walking, and are nearly at the landing site when she hears the thudding sounds of an approaching Titan. “Oh, wow – is that him?” Ellis forgets that she’s supposed to be nervous around Tai, and reaches out to take his hand as she stares up at the… “What _class_ is that?”

“Vanguard. He’s new,” Tai says proudly. “We’ve been linked for about a month, now. Gorgeous, isn’t he?”

Despite the fact that ‘he’ could stamp her life out without even knowing he’d done it, Ellis definitely has to admire the design. “I don’t suppose you have any other shocking news to share with me before I leave.”

“BT! Over here,” Tai calls out, and the bright blue optic sensor swivels to look at them. The Titan changes its course and begins to walk straight towards their location. “No, I think I’m all out of shocking news today.”

Ellis sighs in relief. “Good. I don't think I can handle any more surprises, like if you suddenly announced that you’re really Captain Lastimosa or something.”

Tai’s face undergoes a drastic shift of expression. “Oh, um-”

His Titan comes to a stop in front of them, and she notes that the serial number on his leg reads BT-7274. “ _Pilot Lastimosa. I am here as requested_.”

“ _What_ did that thing just say?” Ellis demands, slowly turning to look at him.

Tai looks as though he’d very much like the ground to swallow him whole at its earliest convenience. “Wonderful timing, BT. Thank you so much.”

“ _Possible sarcasm detected_.”

Ellis stares at the man standing beside her, with whom she’d just had serious mind-melting sex. “Lastimosa. _You_ …are Captain Lastimosa.”

“ _Correct. Tai Lastimosa is a captain in the Militia SRS, and my Pilot. Together, our combat efficiency rating is one of the highest in the Marauder Corps_ ,” BT says helpfully. “ _He is also quite well-known as the founder and chief weapons designer of the Lastimosa Armory_.”

“Thank you, BT,” _Captain Lastimosa_ says, sounding almost as embarrassed as she is.

“ _You are welcome, Pilot_.”

“Exactly…how angry _are_ you, right now?”

“You lied to me.”

“I really didn’t,” he protests. “You didn’t _ask_.”

“ _Pilot. I believe that is what is known as a ‘lie of omission’, which-_ ”

“ _Thank you, BT_ ,” Tai says in clear exasperation, which makes Ellis laugh despite herself.

She turns away to look for the dropship, which should be coming soon, and smiles at the continued conversation which involves Tai hissing for BT to please not make any more unsolicited comments. She’d always marveled at the bond between Pilot and Titan, but this sounds like someone being thoroughly embarrassed by their socially-awkward sibling. “I guess it’s not easy having a Titan.”

Tai clears his throat. “We’re still getting used to each other.”

Ellis laughs again. “I see that.” She turns back to see Tai ( _Lastimosa!_ She’ll never pay for her own drinks ever again in the canteen if she decides to tell someone about this) scuffing his boots in the dirt again. “You could have told me.”

“If I had, you would have thought the worst of me,” he points out, rubbing at the side of his neck. “And I, um, _really_ wanted to get laid.”

“Please. The infamous Captain Lastimosa, pining for human contact?”

“It’s too awkward for me to choose a partner who thinks I’m _infamous_ ,” Tai says. “Believe it or not, it’s nice to wanted for myself instead of my last name.”

She supposes that she can understand that, and also that she can forgive him for not wanting her to know the truth…because she _had_ enjoyed being with him. “You might want to talk to your Titan about diplomacy.”

“That’s the first thing we’ll be discussing; don’t worry about that,” he says ruefully. “Looks like your ride is here. BT? Keep an eye out, please.”

The huge war machine settles in place. “ _Understood, Pilot. IMC Grunt Ellisandre Mekhi has been scanned and placed into shared combat avoidance protocols.”_

Ellis looks up at him blankly, and Tai translates. “He won’t kill you.”

“I guess there are some perks to invading your armory, after all,” she says without thinking, and Tai roars with laughter. “Look, I should probably…get over there.”

He insists on walking her right up to the ramp, and her objections would be louder if she didn’t see that other members of the Militia were doing the exact same thing for _their_ new…acquaintances. “Listen, Ellis. We might be on different sides, but…take care of yourself, eh?”

Ellis nods, and lifts onto her toes to kiss him goodbye. “You, too.”

Tai’s smile abruptly widens. “And, hey; if you can come back down tomorrow, you could take another run at the armory.”


End file.
